Smoking allowed at Michigan casinos, tribal and non-Indian

Thursday, March 29, 2012  

Michigan’s smoke-free law went into effect on May 1, 2010, but state-licensed gaming facilities are exempt, and the law doesn't cover tribal casinos due to lack of jurisdiction.

Some tribes have gone smoke-free but that's not the norm. “It’s always discussed but one of those issues that just doesn’t go anywhere,” John Lufkins, the executive director of the Inter-Tribal Council of Michigan, told The Lansing City Pulse.

The issue is being raised as the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians pursues an off-reservation casino in Lansing. The tribe and its partners were against a smoke-free facility.

“If they did not allow smoking, they wouldn’t be doing any of the business they’re doing now,” Bill Cross, a partner in Lansing Future LLC, told the paper. “If you take that away, it would probably take out 30 percent of the revenue, maybe even higher."

Lufkins said it's up to individual tribes to determine their smoking policies.

Get the Story:
Ifs, ands and butts (The Lansing City Pulse 3/28)

Related Stories:
Smoking a deal breaker for Soo Tribe off-reservation casino (3/27)